We'll meet again, I promise
by Besitzer Deutschland
Summary: Ludwig is drafted into the German army during WWII and is forced to leave Feliciano, his boyfriend, behind to fight for the values that he hates the most. Meanwhile, Feliciano tries to cope with Ludwig's absence.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: The Letter

The sun rose on a normal Saturday morning. I rubbed my eyes as I watched the sun make its daily trip to the sky. The blinds in our room were already opened, and the space next to me was empty. "Ludwig must have already gotten up," I remember thinking to myself. I stood up out of bed to get ready for the day, not knowing what was about to happen. The hard wood floor was very cold on my bare feet as I walked down the steps, still in my pajamas, to meet my partner. The wind howled outside with a familiar hiss as it swept through the draft in our front door. When I reached the bottom of the steps, I saw him in the kitchen. He was drinking his coffee as usual and reading the morning paper. Things like that never really interested me. I spoke up to get his attention, "Hey there, Ludy, awake already?"

Ludwig turned around, still drinking his coffee and raised his eyebrows in acknowledgement. He put down the coffee. "Guten morgan, Feliciano, how are you today?" he asked politely.

I smiled and replied, "I'm great, thank you!". He put down his paper, came up to me and gave me a hug. I hugged him back happily. "So what are we doing today?" I asked, sitting down on the chair he was in.

"Well, not much. I finished all of my work yesterday so we have the day off," he said while fixing his collar. For some reason he was wearing a nice shirt. I guess it was just a habit that he had.

"Oh that's great! So we can just hang out today right?" I asked ecstatically, jumping onto him. He grunted as I landed on him.

"Yeah I guess so, but we should really do some shopping later," he mumbled as he pulled out his paper again. As he glanced at the paper, a disgusted look seemed to crawl onto his face.

"Whatcha reading there, babe?" I asked, wondering why he looked so upset. Ludwig dropped the paper and looked at me.

"It's just this damn war...why can't my people just leave the Poles alone..." he gathered his face into his hands. The Germans had invaded Poland a week earlier and were charging into the Polish territory without relenting. An upset look made its way onto my face as well.

"Well, that's why we left right? We both agreed that Switzerland would be safe," I started nervously.

"Yes...but I'm not sure for how much longer...Hitler and his third reich just don't know when to quit." This deeply frightened me. We both left our homes to escape this war and now it might be coming to us? "But hey, don't worry, ok? Everything will work out. I promise, alright? I won't let anything happen to you," he reassured me, kissing my forehead. "Let's just try and forget about this. We can make some pasta if you like?" he suggested, which cheered me up immediately.

"Oh! Yeah, yeah, yeah!" I cheered, excitedly hugging him again. He hugged me back.

"Alright, alright, let me just get the mail, then we can make it." Ludwig went outside while I took the pots and pans and got out the boxes of pasta. I started to boil the water when Ludwig came back in. He was looking over the mail as always when one letter caught his eye. "Hm, this one is from The State Department...", he said while opening it. Ludwig began to read the letter and his face turned white with horror.

"...W-what's wrong Ludy?" I stammered.

He turned to me, dropped the letter on the table, and said it.

"...I've been drafted..."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Departure 

My eyes welled up with tears and sadness reverberated throughout my whole body. "B-but h-how can they draft you…they…"

Ludwig cut me off. "They have automatically entered all Germans in Switzerland into a draft raffle…it seems I wasn't so lucky…" I started to shake and whimper uncontrollably. Ludwig sat down once more and sighed heavily. "Feliciano…I…I am sorry…but I need to go".

For a split second my sadness turned to anger. "Why? Can't you just…I don't know...not show up?" I yelled at my partner.

He turned his head slowly and replied, "Look, if I don't show up, they'll arrest me, and what good will that do?" He stood up and made me stand as well. "Feliciano, I'll be fine... I promise." Before I could protest, he captured me in a long, passionate kiss. This made me feel somewhat better. His kisses always did have that magical power to cheer me up a bit, no matter what.

I choked down the tears once more and replied, "O-ok then…just be careful alright? Come back safely," I said, nestling my head into his chest.

"Well, don't worry. It says here I'm not leaving for a couple more weeks, so we have some time together," he pointed out, holding me close.

"Ok," I mumbled, tears still stinging my eyes. 

The last few months went by like a flash. Ludwig and I did so much together those days. We went to the park, amusement parks, the cinema, even listened to the radio together. We usually couldn't find a station that we both agreed on, but it seemed to be much easier those few months to find something we both liked. I had almost forgotten about the war, until the day came that he had to leave. The uniform he was to wear came in the mail that day. I felt sad that he had to go, but I also felt a strange confidence that he would make it back. After all he did look very spiffy in his uniform. And the best part was, because of his intellectual standing, he was promoted directly to Sargent. He even scoffed at the fact he would have to lead men into battle. He was all dressed up in his uniform and ready to leave, ready to fight for a country he didn't even believe in. He embraced me once more and reassured me, "I'll be fine, alright? I promise I'll see you again, mein liebe." He pulled me into one last kiss. This kiss, somehow, felt special.  
>I had a good feeling he would be back, a good feeling he would be safe. I was so young.<p> 


End file.
